Blizzard has pulled back the curtain on everything we need to know about Diablo 4’s Season of Witchcraft, that’s coming up soon as the game’s seventh season. They recently unveiled a slew of fresh content and significant tweaks set to roll out with this new season.
In a late-night livestream, the Diablo team kicked off the year by diving into the nitty-gritty. They discussed class balance, gameplay adjustments, and various updates that have been made since the December PTR.
Whenever a new Diablo 4 season rolls around, changes to class balance are always a highlight, and the Season of Witchcraft is no exception. This season marks a particularly exciting shift because it’s the first time we’ll see some major updates to the Spiritborn class.
The Spiritborn was introduced with the Vessel of Hatred expansion, which debuted alongside Season 6. Initially, it hadn’t been around long enough for Blizzard to make any drastic changes, but once players got their hands on it, it quickly became apparent that the Spiritborn was a powerhouse. Even after some early exploits were patched, its various builds still placed it head and shoulders above other classes.
Rather than disrupt the game’s balance mid-season, Blizzard chose to let players enjoy the Spiritborn’s immense power. However, they did caution that many of the components used to craft dominating builds would be reined in for Season 7.
As we near the end of Season 6 and look towards the arrival of Season 7, it’s clear that the Spiritborn has indeed been dialed down. Yet, surprisingly, it still seems primed to be one of the strongest classes out there!
The Spiritborn showed its might in the patch 2.1 PTR, and Blizzard hasn’t dramatically altered that version. They mostly focused on fixing some unintended synergies that led to Season 6’s power spikes. Notably, Razor Wings builds can look forward to a new Unique item and a fresh Aspect to enhance their effectiveness.
On the flip side, the Sorcerer lagged as the weakest class in the Season 7 PTR. Blizzard responded by beefing up a number of its passives. They also improved the Legendary Paragon nodes Searing Heat and Icefall, making them more adaptable for various builds. This season, Sorcerers can expect two new Uniques geared toward lightning builds.
Other classes aren’t being left out of the update parade. The Druid will see significant changes, particularly in smoothing out the class’s traditionally slow early-game resource generation. Changes to Spirit Boon help this along, and the Blurred Beast has been reworked yet again to benefit shred builds.
The Barbarian’s Hammer of the Ancients has been amped up once more, complementing the power unlocked by a new Unique chest piece perfect for earthquake builds. Moreover, Whirlwind has received some numerical boosts as well.
For those who crave every detail, the 2.1.0 patch notes can be found on the official blog. Mark your calendars, because the Season of Witchcraft kicks off on Tuesday, January 21.
